Why do we celebrate Easter with eggs?

This month we celebrate Easter, and often this holiday comes with other traditions: family meals or gatherings, outdoor festivities (as long as the snow stays away!), worship services, and other more. For many families, mine included, there’s also a long-standing tradition of Easter egg hunts. 

 

In my family, Easter egg hunts have a history of their own. They’re not just for kids, but  for everyone. Eggs are hidden all over the yard. Some are obvious, some are hidden in creative spots. And what starts with a simple activity, turns into a full competition to see who can find the most eggs and get the best prizes. 

 

This is a tradition many families look forward to each year: the bright colors, the curiosity of creative hiding spots, and the anticipation of what kind of prizes you might find within them. 

 

But it raises a simple question: What do eggs have to do with Easter?

 

We don’t see eggs appearing in the Easter story in an obvious way. We don’t see egg hunts or brightly colored eggs hidden throughout the biblical accounts that first Easter. But over time, eggs have become one of the most recognizable symbols of the season. In the United States, we don’t just hide them in our yards but we also dye them fun colors, decorate our homes and gardens with egg-themed displays, and even have egg themed dishes in our holiday meals. But this simple object carries a much deeper meaning.

 

For centuries, eggs have been seen as a symbol of new life. They don’t look like much on the outside… but on the inside, there is life. It’s a life we wait for, one that takes time before it finally appears or grows. It reminds me of springtime when we find ourselves waiting, watching, and hoping for signs of spring and new life in the world around us. And when it finally shows up with green grass, buds, and longer days… it feels like a fresh start.

 

And that connects more closely to Easter than we might realize.

 

For the Easter story, at its core, is a story about life in the most unexpected place. For the tomb was empty, and what everything thought was the end was just the beginning. Jesus’s resurrection reminds us that life can emerge from what seems finished, and that hope can be found in the darkest of places. 

 

In a similar way, eggs remind us of this same truth. They show us that what might seem ordinary might hold something extraordinary, that new life can be found right in front in of us, and that even after a long season of waiting (whether it’s for winter to be over or navigating through a difficult time) hope can still show up in ordinary yet powerful ways.

 

So this year, however you might celebrate Easter… whether it’s with egg hunts, family meals or quiet reflections… I invite you to take a moment to notice the small signs of life all around you. In the brightly colored eggs in yards, in the first glimpses of spring, in the laughter of loved ones. And as you notice those signs of life all around you, may they point you to the new life and the hope that Christ brings us in the most unexpected ways.